WHEN THE STORM BROKE
Instead of entering the tent after Crazy Jane's snub, Patricia and Cora
Kidder gazed at the girl pacing back and forth before it, then laughing
sarcastically turned and walked away. Mrs. Livingston saw them in the
distance when she came out, but her attention was immediately centred on
Jane.
"Miss McCarthy," she said. "I wouldn't keep Harriet up long, were I in
your place. The poor girl has had a trying time of it this evening. Were
the two girls who just walked away from here, Miss Scott and Miss Kidder?"
"Yes, ma'am. And I gave them a good stiff punch--I mean I told them--I let
them know how much I loved them."
"Try to love every one, Miss McCarthy. It doesn't pay for one to go about
with any other feeling in the heart."
"I guess I must have been born with the other feeling," returned Crazy
Jane. "But at any rate, I know I have the other feeling now."
"Try to be like Miss Burrell, sweet and forgiving. Good night."
"Good night, Mrs. Livingston. I'll just say 'good night' to Harriet. I
won't stay a minute."
Jane was true to her word. She ran into the tent and gathering Harriet in
her arms, kissed her on the forehead, very gently, too, for Jane; after
which the impulsive girl ran out without giving Harriet a chance to say a
word.
The hour for "lights out" not having arrived, most of the girls were out
by the campfire chatting. Harriet preferred to be alone on this occasion.
She did not feel equal to talking with any one. She felt that the day had
been a miserable failure. There had been two days of it. First, everything
in the kitchen had gone wrong. This condition had somewhat improved after
Patricia had left the kitchen, only to become many times worse after three
days had elapsed.
Harriet tried to reason out the mystery. Her first thought was that
Patricia might have had something to do with the spoiling of the soup. But
she had not the slightest proof that Patricia was the culprit.
Harriet was at a loss to know what to do. The problem was too much for
her. Her head whirled with her effort to solve it Before retiring for the
night, however, she moved her cot to the extreme rear of the tent so that
the light would not be so strong in her eyes when Patricia and Cora came
in to retire. After a time Harriet dropped off to sleep. She was awakened
by voices outside at the rear of the tent.
The light was out and the tent was in darkness. Harriet did not know what
time it was, but hearing regular breathing she decided that of course the
two girls must have come in and retired without having awakened her. But
as Harriet listened she recognized the voices. They were outside the tent
within a yard of her head at the moment.
"To 'The Pines'?" came the question in Patricia's voice.
"Yes," replied Cora. "Charlie Collier wants me to go with him. He says he
will come for me in his car. They are going to have a perfectly lovely
dance at 'The Pines.'"
"Have you spoken to Mrs. Livingston?"
"She wouldn't let me go. Of what use would it be to speak to her? I'm so
angry I could howl."
"What a simpleton you are, Cora Kidder," chided Patricia. "If I had an
invitation to that dance and wanted to go--really were crazy to go--I'd
go!"
"How?"
"Cut for it."
"You mean go without permission?"
"Of course. I'd do it just to defy her."
A brief period of silence followed. Then Cora spoke.
"If I thought I could do it and get back without discovery, I would," she
said slowly.
"Of course you can get back. Tell Charlie Collier at what hour you must
return and see that he starts back to camp in good season with you. Is he
coming alone?"
"Oh, mercy no. His sister will come with him and return with us."
"When is the party!"
"The day after to-morrow night."
"How are you to let him know that you will go?"
"He is going to call here with his sister to-morrow."
"Good! Now don't be afraid. Tell him you'll go."
"I believe I will," replied Cora. By the way, Patricia, the soap trick
worked all right, didn't it!"
"It certainly did," was the answer, and Patricia broke into a merry laugh,
in which Cora did not appear to join so heartily.
Harriet heard no more. The two girls had gotten up and moved out of her
hearing. But she was shocked beyond expression. The soap in the consommé
was no longer a mystery. She had never believed that Patricia was quite
so unscrupulous. Now she knew the worst. Harriet did not know what course
to pursue, but after thinking it over she concluded that there was nothing
for her to do. As to the proposed trip to "The Pines," surely were she to
go to Cora and tell her what a wrong thing she was planning, Harriet would
merely be snubbed. Besides, it was not at all certain that Cora Kidder
would go.
She heard the two girls slip into the tent and knew from their light
footfalls that they were wearing their slippers. Harriet knew, too, that
they had been sitting outside clad in their wrappers, for they got into
bed immediately. There were a few whispered words, which she failed to
catch, then silence settled over the tent, broken occasionally by Tommy's
unintelligible mutterings. Tommy was dreaming again--giving promise of
having a mild form of nightmare later on.
A gust of wind set the tree-tops to rustling. All Nature stirred
restlessly. The listening girl heard the disturbed chirpings of the birds
in the trees. Following this came the patter of raindrops on the roof of
the tent. A brilliant flash of lightning made the tent as light as day for
the fraction of a second. Harriet could plainly see the faces of the three
girls in their cots. They were asleep, or at least appeared to be
sleeping, for their eyes were closed. Then came the distant rumble of
thunder.
Though unafraid, Harriet shivered a little and snuggled down under the
blankets. The rain now began to fall, at first mildly then increasing to a
roar as heavy drops began beating on the canvas roof. The sound lulled her
to sleep. She simply could not fight off the drowsiness that had taken
possession of her, and unmindful of the storm outside, Harriet soon passed
into peaceful slumber.
The storm grew heavier. The tents were illuminated almost incessantly by
flashes of lightning. It was quite evident, however, that the camp was not
in the heart of the electrical disturbance, although a veritable deluge of
water was now falling upon it.
Nearly every girl in the camp lay wide awake with head buried in her
pillow, shivering, momentarily expecting to be struck by lightning.
Harriet was suddenly startled by a scream following a particularly vivid
flash of lightning.
"Did some one call?" she asked.
"Oh, yeth, yeth," moaned Tommy. "It wath awful."
"There is nothing to fear," returned Harriet. "Lie down and cover your
head if the lightning disturbs you. Are the other girls asleep?"
A flash answered the question for her. Patricia and Cora were sitting up
in their beds, with blankets wrapped about them. Their faces were pale
with fright.
"Don't be frightened, girls," Harriet called soothingly. "You can tell by
listening that the worst of the storm has passed. It has gone to the north
of us. The wind is blowing strongly from the south."
Cora gave her an appealing look that made Harriet feel sorry for the girl.
Patricia never looked at her at all.
"It may rain all the rest of the night, but the dangerous part of the
storm has passed," continued Harriet. "I'm glad of it myself. One doesn't
feel any too secure in these flimsy tents in a heavy gale. But don't
worry."
"Oh, thave me!" wailed Tommy, quickly pulling the blankets over her head
as the tent was illuminated by a particularly brilliant flash of
lightning.
The downpour became heavier. Next the tent began to leak. Harriet felt
several large drops of rain strike in her face.
"I think I had better move," she said laughingly. "How is it with you,
girls?"
"I'm soaked," answered Cora.
"Drag your cots into the middle of the tent. I think we shall find it
drier there."
This suited Grace. She felt the need of closer companionship. Then
followed the sound of cots being scraped along the floor. Harriet had
reasoned correctly. The middle of the tent thus far had not begun to leak.
They crawled in under the blankets once more, but three of the Camp Girls
were trembling and shivering with fear at the fury of the storm. Ten
minutes later the tent sprang a leak directly over their heads. Very
shortly after that the four cots and the bedding were thoroughly soaked by
the merciless downpour.
Patricia, Cora and Tommy hurriedly crawled out of their water-soaked beds.
Harriet decided that she would be as well off in her cot, so she lay
still. She did suggest that one of the girls might try to light the
lantern. Patricia fumbled about in the darkness for the matches, and
finally found them, only to discover that they were so wet that they would
not light.
Suddenly a new and terrifying sound was borne to the ears of the four
girls.
Tommy screamed with fright. Cora uttered a terrified wail. Harriet and
Patricia, however, were silent. At the first suggestion of the threatening
sound Harriet had leaped from her cot. She stood with one hand slightly
raised, her head bent forward ever so little, her eyes tightly closed,
every nerve in her body centred on listening to the disturbing sound,
seeking to discover its meaning. Then all at once it occurred to her what
it was.
Harriet acted instantly.
"Down!" she cried sharply. "Under the cots! Quick! Do as I tell you!
Tommy! Are you under?"
"Yeth. Oh, thave me!" came a muffled voice that seemed to be under the
floor of the tent.
Patricia and Cora, recognizing that Harriet had some well defined plan in
mind, obeyed her without the slightest hesitation. They threw themselves
on the floor hastily crawling under the cots. Then Harriet Burrell made a
sudden dive. She was standing several feet from her own bed. The dive sent
her sliding underneath the nearest cot. Her progress was stopped by the
body of one of her companions.
She had sought cover none too soon. The most terrific crashing that any of
those girls ever had listened to, filled the air. Above the uproar was
heard faintly the scream of a girl somewhere outside the tent. Then the
blow fell, a mighty, crushing blow that seemed to set the universe all a
tremble.